REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, PEKANBARU -- The Terra and Aqua satellites detected two hotspots in Kuala Kampar Sub-district, Pelalawan District, Riau Province, on Wednesday. Two hotspots, with confidence level of over 50 percent, were detected in Pelalawan.

"One of the hotspots was confirmed to have been caused by a forest fire," Slamet Riyadi, head of the Pekanbaru meteorology station, stated here, Wednesday.

Sanya Gautami, a local meteorology analyst, remarked that Riau is currently entering the first phase of dry season. "Rainfall has decreased. Such a condition is forecast to occur until March," Gautami noted.

On the contrary, Java Island is currently experiencing the peak of the rainy season.

Meanwhile, the Pekanbaru Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) had earlier detected 17 hotspots in seven districts in Riau Province amid this year's dry season, which may occur from late January to early March.

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The hotspots, indicating the occurrence of forest and land fires in the districts, have confidence levels of over 50 percent, Slamet Riyadi had noted on Feb 1.

Riyadi stated that six of the 17 hotspots, monitored by the Pekabaru City-based BMKG from the Terra and Aqua imagery satellite over the past 24 hours, were detected in Indragiri Hilir District, while five others were found in Pelalawan District.

The remaining hotpots were found in the districts of Indragiri Hulu, Bengkalis, Kampar, Kuantan Singingi, and Siak, he revealed, adding that five of the 17 hotspots had confidence levels of more than 70 percent.

Three of the five hotspots were detected in certain areas within Pelalawan District, while two others had affected the areas of Kampar and Indragiri Hulu Districts, he noted.

In response to the detected hotspots, Head of the Riau Disaster Migitation Agency Edwar Sanget has urged all related parties to maintain a high level of alertness and intensify their patrols.

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